Preview The Ashes 2017/18

[Soups]

Well the time is almost here. The greatest rivalry in cricket history, starts in less than one week. Discuss all your thoughts here...

I’ll start. If Paine and Marsh are selected, it is the most baffling selections in Ashes history.

 

[Pali23]

Well the time is almost here. The greatest rivalry in cricket history, starts in less than one week. Discuss all your thoughts here...

I’ll start. If Paine and Marsh are selected, it is the most baffling selections in Ashes history.

Happy for Paine he is easily the best keeper bat we have.

 

[Soups]

Happy for Paine he is easily the best keeper bat we have.

Strange though, for a bloke who hasn’t played a lot of 4 day cricket over the years. Has a poor average, but yes is a good keeper. I just think if they were going to go for a keeper that can bat a bit they should have gone with Carey. Get a little bit of youth in the team and get a very good keeper.

 

[Pali23]

Strange though, for a bloke who hasn’t played a lot of 4 day cricket over the years. Has a poor average, but yes is a good keeper. I just think if they were going to go for a keeper that can bat a bit they should have gone with Carey. Get a little bit of youth in the team and get a very good keeper.

Paine was going to be our next keeper before injury and I have no idea why he isnt keeping at state level. His bating is good enough to play top order alone when in form.

 

[Soups]

 

[TradeDraft]

I don't really Care much.

I say England will Re-Tain the Ashes

 

[Soups]

England have a lot of unknown players. I think we could really struggle against our quicks. Root, Cook, Bairstow, Ali will probably do the damage with the bat. Anderson struggles in Australia, Broad plays well under pressure and Woakes is in some good form. I think it’s going to be pretty evenly matched so that’s probably all you can ask for.

 

[pugsville]

Strange though, for a bloke who hasn’t played a lot of 4 day cricket over the years. Has a poor average, but yes is a good keeper. I just think if they were going to go for a keeper that can bat a bit they should have gone with Carey. Get a little bit of youth in the team and get a very good keeper.

In the Absence of a credible batsman keeper in form whats strange about simply picking the best keeper?

 

[Soups]

In the Absence of a credible batsman keeper in form whats strange about simply picking the best keeper?

Is he though? Up until last week he hadn’t even played shield. If you’re not even the keeper for your state shield team I fail to see how you’re the best.

 

[ZEV]

In the era of competing against mega $$$ 20/20 competitions I find it staggering that our Test selectors just pick and choose who ever they want, when they want with no rhyme or reason.

 

[Schraderbrau]

Happy for Paine he is easily the best keeper bat we have.

not even the best keeper/bat in tasmania

 

[Schraderbrau]

In the Absence of a credible batsman keeper in form whats strange about simply picking the best keeper?

They should be picking ludeman then he'd be batting at 11 fwiw.

Neville is the obvious choice. He's a good keeper (unlike Wade) and is capable of hanging around with the bat at test level.

 

[Schraderbrau]

As baffling as the Payne selection is, the great disgrace is Marsh getting the nod in front of Maxwell.

 

[Pali23]

not even the best keeper/bat in tasmania

He is I'd suggest part of Wades contract was that he at least got first crack

 

[Schraderbrau]

He is I'd suggest part of Wades contract was that he at least got first crack

And i'd suggest that if your not currently playing state cricket you have no business playing test cricket. And that's not even considering his age and body of work at first class level. Someone on the cricket board thread said that Darren Lehman hit a FC hundred more recently than Paine.

 

[Russian Demon]

As baffling as the Payne selection is, the great disgrace is Marsh getting the nod in front of Maxwell.

If they pick Maxwell they might as well turn it into a 4 innings 1 dayer.

He is not a Test cricketer.

 

[Soups]

If they pick Maxwell they might as well turn it into a 4 innings 1 dayer.

He is not a Test cricketer.

I’d usually agree but I think he’s adapting his game. His second innings in the last game was very well batted.

 

[pugsville]

not even the best keeper/bat in tasmania

He better keeper than Wade. And wade's been pretty poor with the bat. Selecting Wade with his fumbles and poor batting record. Wades abridges 28.58 Paine 35.87 in tests. (wades 36 Paine 29 in first class) Though my following of shield cricket has dropped off the last couple of years. Paine was a much better keeper, wade just wasn't a front line keeper from what I've seen.

Glen Maxwell 14 inns 339 runs @ 26.07 0 50s 1 100 (First class 39.40)
Shaun Marsh 42 inns 1476 runs @ 36.00 7 50s 4 100s (first class 40.84)

 

[Schraderbrau]

He better keeper than Wade. And wade's been pretty poor with the bat. Selecting Wade with his fumbles and poor batting record. Wades abridges 28.58 Paine 35.87 in tests. (wades 36 Paine 29 in first class) Though my following of shield cricket has dropped off the last couple of years. Paine was a much better keeper, wade just wasn't a front line keeper from what I've seen.

Glen Maxwell 14 inns 339 runs @ 26.07 0 50s 1 100 (First class 39.40)
Shaun Marsh 42 inns 1476 runs @ 36.00 7 50s 4 100s (first class 40.84)

Yeah I'm not making excuses for Wade, he's a terrible keeper and not a great batsman. Not selecting Neville was an awful decision imo.

As for Maxwell v Marsh. Marsh is 35, injury prone and has failed at test level. Maxwell is 5 years younger, has come off a good series in India and is a genuine matchwinner if he makes runs. A lot of it comes down to the message they're sending to the rest of the team. Selecting Marsh demonstrates that they have no faith in our top order to get the job done. It's incredibly negative considering we are playing at home, in good batting conditions and are raging favourites to take the series down. In that context the no 6 should be someone who can come in, up the tempo and score quick runs. It shouldn't be a bloke who averages 36 at test level with a strike rate under 50 and who has only ever made runs grafting out an innings. It is horrific decision.

 

[Schraderbrau]

If they pick Maxwell they might as well turn it into a 4 innings 1 dayer.

He is not a Test cricketer.

yeah ok you can't be a test cricket unless you have a strike rate under 30

 

[Bad Horse]

Good to see the Collingwood selection commitee are branching out into other sports

 

[pugsville]

Yeah I'm not making excuses for Wade, he's a terrible keeper and not a great batsman. Not selecting Neville was an awful decision imo.

As for Maxwell v Marsh. Marsh is 35, injury prone and has failed at test level. Maxwell is 5 years younger, has come off a good series in India and is a genuine matchwinner if he makes runs. A lot of it comes down to the message they're sending to the rest of the team. Selecting Marsh demonstrates that they have no faith in our top order to get the job done. It's incredibly negative considering we are playing at home, in good batting conditions and are raging favourites to take the series down. In that context the no 6 should be someone who can come in, up the tempo and score quick runs. It shouldn't be a bloke who averages 36 at test level with a strike rate under 50 and who has only ever made runs grafting out an innings. It is horrific decision.

I've always been a fan of picked the best keeper in the absence of a very good batsman/keeper. Nevill is ok, event seen Paine keep in a long time but he was the best keeper a few years back. And his batting is solid sort of game that would hold up.

Marsh yeah it's the least worst option for a tough series. Maxwell has never convinced that he's really a test player. Great talent, but test match batting is a mind thing. Marsh is only being given a shot because general lack of young players either taking the chance they got or demanding a place through runs.

raging favourites not amongst the more educated pundits, being at home helps, Smith, Starc, Warner need a broader base than that,. the batting been fragile for a while (and Marsh's is not good starter) the attack looks ok, the batting needs couple of guys to step up could be an interesting series.

 

[Schraderbrau]

I've always been a fan of picked the best keeper in the absence of a very good batsman/keeper. Nevill is ok, event seen Paine keep in a long time but he was the best keeper a few years back. And his batting is solid sort of game that would hold up.

Marsh yeah it's the least worst option for a tough series. Maxwell has never convinced that he's really a test player. Great talent, but test match batting is a mind thing. Marsh is only being given a shot because general lack of young players either taking the chance they got or demanding a place through runs.

raging favourites not amongst the more educated pundits, being at home helps, Smith, Starc, Warner need a broader base than that,. the batting been fragile for a while (and Marsh's is not good starter) the attack looks ok, the batting needs couple of guys to step up could be an interesting series.

sportsbet have us at 1:36 to take down the series, that seems like raging favourites to me.

Paine averages 29 in first class cricket and Darren Lehman has made a first class century more recently than he has. That is not solid, it is barely satisfactory for state level which is probably the reason why he found himself out of the state team. As for wicketkeeping, Neville is a very good keeper and would be one of the better pure keepers playing at international level (admittedly because most of them are batsman/keepers as opposed to keeper/batsman as Neville is.). He also averages 40 and made several 100s at state level which makes him significantly better with the bat than Paine.

See my other post for reasons why selecting Marsh is terrible although I would add that in no world is selecting an injury prone 35 year old with a mediocre test record the 'least worst option'. Even forgetting about Maxwell, batting Bancroft at 6 and retaining Renshaw is easily better 'least worst option' as is playing any younger player for experience. I mean if a 35 year old with no future is being gifted a game, we'd be better off giving it to a young player who might at least help us down the track. Very unlikely either help us at all in the immediate future but at least the second option has some future. Selecting Marsh was the worst 'least worse' option I can think of tbh.

 

[pugsville]

sportsbet have us at 1:36 to take down the series, that seems like raging favourites to me.

The Australian test team is always over valued in australian bookmaking.

 

[pugsville]

Paine averages 29 in first class cricket and Darren Lehman has made a first class century more recently than he has. That is not solid, it is barely satisfactory for state level which is probably the reason why he found himself out of the state team. As for wicketkeeping, Neville is a very good keeper and would be one of the better pure keepers playing at international level (admittedly because most of them are batsman/keepers as opposed to keeper/batsman as Neville is.). He also averages 40 and made several 100s at state level which makes him significantly better with the bat than Paine.

See my other post for reasons why selecting Marsh is terrible although I would add that in no world is selecting an injury prone 35 year old with a mediocre test record the 'least worst option'. Even forgetting about Maxwell, batting Bancroft at 6 and retaining Renshaw is easily better 'least worst option' as is playing any younger player for experience. I mean if a 35 year old with no future is being gifted a game, we'd be better off giving it to a young player who might at least help us down the track. Very unlikely either help us at all in the immediate future but at least the second option has some future. Selecting Marsh was the worst 'least worse' option I can think of tbh.

I think Marsh is more likely to score a big hundred than Maxwell, or Renshaw. tests are won by batsman making hundreds. If Marsh makes two hundreds he sorta be justified.

My points given the lack of in form options going experienced player in a tough vital series isn't totally outrageous. It's not a selection I would have made but I can see the thinking.